A Thief in the Night
by ancientdragonduelist
Summary: Gru's worst nightmare has always been a kidnapper coming for the girls. Villains make enemies, and those enemies are not picky about how to exact revenge. Now Margo, Edith, and Agnes must pay for Gru's sins. Not even One Big Unicorn can protect Three Little Kittens from A Thief in the Night... Rated T for minor violence and language
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Yes yes, I know. This starting a new story halfway through the old one is becoming a bad habit. My HHTYD story is merely on Hiatus, the plot has gotten all twisted and confused. I'll begin work on it again as soon as I figure some crucial things out. For now, I have this slightly OOC Despicable Me story. My Beta for the story is NightOwl360. She's keeping me in line and working. :) The story begins now...**

* * *

I steadied my breath, marveling at the fact that we hadn't been detected yet. Around me, the exhausted gasps of my squad could be heard. If you looked real hard, you could even see their outlines against the black night. Charlie squad had killed the power a few minutes back and we had approached the target house in almost total darkness. The commander had foreseen this, and ordered us to use the tactical light attachment for our pistols. If our favored sidearm couldn't use it, we had to use the M9's. This seriously annoyed me, I missed my .44. I've been using that gun since I was 12. But the flashlight would prove an indispensable tool on this mission. The commander _always _knows what he's doing, but the house shouldn't have stayed black this long. A criminal with a record like Felonious never relies on something beyond his personal control. This house should've been lit up within 2 minutes of the loss of power. Then again, the villain is getting old. Maybe he's been skipping routine maintenance.

A sharp _click_ broke me out of my thoughts. I answered it with one of my own; they were the signal to prepare. I went to various windows, doors, and walls, laying down a total of 5 C4 charges. They would be used to create a distraction or emergency exit once we went loud. I kept one charge in my jacket, as per orders. You never know when you might need a pound of serious explosives. 2 clicks, time to find your partner for the mission. I met with Alex at an armed window, ready to breach. Alex is easily the closest friend I have. We were really close even before this Black Ops project got us. She is the strongest, most focused, beautiful and, under the right conditions, most fun person I know. Many people see her as cold and condescending, but I know better. Three clicks echoed around the darkness, and everyone broke a window and jumped into the house.

Instantly, the house lights snapped on, blinding us temporarily from the shock of so much light after almost none. Simultaneously, a blaring klaxon sounded. It seems Felonious has upgraded his security since he adopted the girls. Pretty shrewd, keeping his house dark unless there's a security breach, helps keep the community looking the other way. Felonious is so dangerous, well-armed and intimidating, no police force would go after him. That's why we were sent in. Still, we were already compromised, and nowhere near our objective. If we didn't move fast, Felonious would have them locked in an impenetrable safe room and the mission would be a failure. Already the little yellow jumping beans, codename minions, were seemingly popping out of the floor, armed with various melee weapons and explosives. The dossier told us that most minions are extremely childish and incompetent with anything but a bomb or knife, but around a quarter of them are specially trained in various martial arts and are much more dangerous.

Sam is the commander of our group. He might be overly enthusiastic and lack some common sense, but he's one of the best at your back when things hit the fan. He had a new plan ready in seconds. "Joseph, with me, we'll draw them off. Nick, Alex, GO!"

We nodded as they sprinted off, doing as much damage as they could and moving to the living room, where the main access to the lab was. If we were lucky, Felonious would interpret our intent as to rob or destroy his lab, and move to protect that first. If we were lucky. Alex and I sprinted for the large spiral staircase, she yelled "You blind 'em, I'll nail 'em" as we went.

I understood instantly, drawing my M9 and turning on the high-power flashlight while she screwed a silencer on her M16A4. Every time a minion or several came running down the staircase, they met with a blinding light and three silent bullets to the chest. The shots didn't seem to kill them, but it sure knocked them down. We made it to the second floor relatively undetected. There, we hit jackpot. A little 8-year old girl was wandering the hallways, looking nervous but determined. 3 minions surrounded her, carrying no weapons. Finally, one objective located.

The fact that the minions lacked weapons should've tipped us off that they were of the elite variety, but we had seconds before Felonious would probably appear to protect his daughters. We didn't stop at all, I just kicked two of the minions into a wall at high speed and Alex scoped up the little girl as we ran past. We expected that would be that, but it wasn't. Alex screamed in sudden agony and toppled to the ground, dropping the kid. Pure rage flooded my system and my vision ran red. I wasn't really thinking properly, but I lined up my pistol's iron sights on little Edith Marie Gru. Thankfully, before I could fire, the minion I hadn't kicked into a wall tackled my arm hard and the shot went wild. It was the first un-silenced shot on this level of the manor, and the fact that it was on the same floor as the girls' bedroom told the housemaster what our intended target was.

The bullet punched a hole in the wall right next to Edith's head, but now my attention was on the minion. Without missing a beat, I used the momentum of the blow to draw my combat knife with one hand, even as the other one reached out to grab the minion. He grabbed my arm instead, swung up, presumably to attack my head, and got stabbed in the eye. The eyeglass he was wearing was bullet-proof, but my anger had given the knife much more power than most bullets. The minion went down screaming much louder than Alex had. Instead of grabbing the girl and running, like I should've done, I dropped down next to Alex. I needed to know she was okay.

Even as I hit my knees next to Alex, she reached under her arm and threw a strange taser-looking device across the room. I shot the damned thing without even looking at it. I didn't speak, just looked right into her eyes. They tell me more than words ever could. Right then, they told me she was recovering from the pain fast, and would be back up soon. Her eyes looked into mine too. She probably saw my worry and anger. Our bond is very deep and powerful. Knowing at last she was okay, I got back up to re-capture Edith.

Suddenly realizing I had tried to shoot our hostage, momentary panic filled my system. Not only is killing an innocent 8-year old sick and wrong, her death would mean total mission failure. Felonious would never co-operate if he found his adopted daughter dead on the floor. Thankfully, she wasn't hurt, only about as scared as someone can be. Edith was scrambling to her feet to run for it when I got her. I feel really horrible for trying to kill her, and promised myself to ensure she would not be further harmed in our care. Even as Alex finally got to her feet and started running, a _massive_ fireball struck the nearby wall. If we hadn't moved right when we did, we would've been roasted alive. Instinctively knowing that the shooter would kill us if he got a clear shot, we dove behind the first cover we encountered: a suit of armor with flowers growing out of its helmet. Behind us, a deeply accented Russian voice growled. "I know you're there. Surrender now, and I may let you live"

Hearing her father's voice, the girl began to struggle and scream. "Daddy! Daddy they got me!"

"Edith!?" The voice changed, it was now thick with shock and worry. "Edith I'm coming!"

I have never heard such venom in a voice than when Felonious gave us his next ultimatum. "Return my daughter to me this instant. If she isn't at my side, unharmed, in three seconds, you will know pain worse than your darkest fear or blackest nightmare" He wasn't joking either. Before escaping Russia Felonious had learned, from personal experience, every type of torture the country knew. That man can make anyone go insane after one day. Previous teams attacking the manor no longer exist due to his dark skill. But Alex and I already knew that surrendering would be suicide. And we had a plan.

Pretending to give up, I got a firm grip on Edith's arm and held her out into the hallway. She started fighting like a demon, biting, kicking and clawing, desperately trying to get back to her adoptive father. From what we know, Edith is one of the toughest and most reckless girls there are, including the ones in our Black Ops team. But there's only so much an 8-year old can take. As Felonious put his focus on the girl, Alex was loading her M320. Right as the world's #2 villain yelled "Let her go!" the hallway basically disappeared in a cloud of white smoke. The M320 grenade launcher is fully capable of launching smoke rounds, and Alex had it mounted under her M16's barrel.

As soon as the cloud burst open, we sprinted for a nearby window. I was firing random shots over my shoulder as we went. Alex tried to shatter the window with her bullets, but she only cracked them before her gun went empty. Knowing exactly what we were going to do, and from how far up we were gonna do it, I grabbed Alex's hand, yelled "hold on" to Edith, and jumped right through the partially intact window. Time slowed down, but the ground was rushing up fast. I curled myself around Edith, to protect her from the fall, got in the crash position, and the world blacked out.

I thought I had died and went to heaven or something when I opened my eyes. I couldn't see a thing, everything was a burning light. Then a small voice said "oops", and the world came into focus. Edith was sitting on my chest holding my M9 and pointing it right at my chest.

"Margo says killing is wrong, so I'm just gonna let Dad get you. He's on his way down right now. You're in so much trouble! Even worse than the time I stole the jetpack!"

Wondering briefly how _that _particular event had turned out, I knocked her off my chest in a single blow. After a squeal of surprise and indignation, I heard her say "Oh, _now_ you're gonna get it." Slightly worried, I looked at her, bringing the gun to bear on me. Pretty good aim for an 8-year old. I'm guessing Felonious had been training her in firearms. I did notice that my hammer was pulled back, this indicated an empty chamber. So I just mumbled, "I wouldn't do that if I were you" A low click and confused "Hey" told me she had tried to shoot anyways. Then there was another sharp squeal, and a powerful arm on my shoulder, yanking me to my feet. Alex.

"Get up, tough guy, haven't I heard you boasting to Brandon that you could jump off a three story building and not get hurt?" Alex asked, laughing.

"I didn't say I intended to land exactly where I started" I countered weakly. Alex knows me too well.

"Whatever your story was, time to go, Sam and Joseph need an exit." She said, serious again. She hates showing much emotion. But I remembered that our other squad mates were still stuck inside the manor, and grew serious too.

"You got the little terror?" I asked, motioning to the struggling ball of pink energy in Alex's left arm.

"Yep, let's mount out." she called, as I clicked my clacker and 5 different C4 charges lit up the night. Within seconds, Sam and Joseph were with us at the curb, rightly tired out after having to distract The Dr. Nerfario himself and a small minion army for a few minutes. Felinous' forces started pouring out of the manor, sensing victory, when our evac showed up, and all hell broke loose.

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**A/N: For those of you that don't know, Gru's first name is Felonious. (Seen on the adoption computer screen during the movie) I've always wondered how well Gru's house is protected, this is my take on it. I've taken my character inspiration from Call of Duty Black Ops, but my driving force come from Battlefield 3 (of which I am totally addicted to) Margo is actually my favorite and will play an important role in the story, but I figured Edith would deal with being kidnapped better. Don't expect too much of Agnus, tiny kids confuse me to no end. It's time Gru felt the force of the army in my opinion, that man is arrogant, violent, and crazy! I wonder whether or not I will kill him... :) Chapter 2 has already been sent to NightOwl360, it should be returned soon. 3 is in it's Alpha stage right now. Check out her story: Madcap Moments when you have time. It a'int been updated since February, but she has affirmed it is not abandoned. I hope it is update soon. I'll be back soon! Keep faith in me.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I LIVE! :D Sorry this chapter took so long to post, I've been pretty busy with college and all. In fact, midterms are next week! OK, story time...**

Two metal beasts emerged from the cover of darkness. They are known by the public, but rarely seen, if at all. Only the enemies of the United States or their own military see them with any regularity. 8-wheeled armored fighting vehicles wearing military colors are pretty uncommon. One looks decidedly more deadly than its brother, but the smaller brother is much more well-known, and feared. The main strength of these monsters is not to fight other vehicles, though. It is their ability to deliver troops almost anywhere, including your front door. The few who saw these vehicles on the dark streets of California turned away and pretended they didn't exist, but within moments, the Gru household would learn the true power of the M1126 Infantry Carrier Vehicle and M1128 Mobile Gun System.

* * *

Back at the manor, Gru was flooded with worry and seething in rage, but was at last sensing victory.

The instant the lights had gone out, Gru was awake in bed, and ready to spring to his feet. His instinct screamed danger, but he held it in check. More than likely some troublesome minion had been playing with one of Dr. Nefario's weapons and blown a fuse. He wanted to check on the girls, but things had been a little testy today, and he didn't want to wake them. He had been arguing with Margo about their need to go to school, Edith supporting his anti-school position, and Agnes wasn't paying attention. She didn't quite know what school was, and trusted Daddy to make the right choice for her. As the argument grew longer and more heated, Gru had started to lose his patience. He loved his girls more than anything in the world, but they could really give him a migraine when they wanted to! However, the more he listened to them, the more Margo's argument outplayed his own.

Maybe they would become super-villains like him, maybe not, but in any case, they needed a basic education. The villainy part Gru could teach himself, but there are many more things he can't teach and they need, like social skills. Gru never had many friends, or seen the need for them, but didn't want to deprive his kittens of that experience. However, frustrated with the argument, Gru lost his temper and sent them both to bed. Both had protested hard, bugging him to figure out which side he was on, however Gru was done. Margo and Edith would go to their rooms for the rest of the night, Agnes could stay until bedtime. He got the distinct feeling both were mad at him, but he was too tired to do anything about it right then.

When bedtime had finally come, the pounding in his head got heavier. Jerry had thought Agnes should try out coffee because it tastes so good. The little 5-year old had downed a full cup right in front of him. Though there didn't appear to be any serious damage done by the drink, Agnes wasn't going to sleep anytime soon. After assigning Jerry bathroom duty for the rest of the week, he decided to let Agnes go "play" with Nefario. The old man was always up all night, which made him the perfect babysitter for his youngest. Well, once Gru had made dead certain he wasn't going to experiment on her at least.

Margo and Edith were a great deal less than pleased when they learned their baby sister got to stay up all night in the lab while they had to go to bed early, but Gru already had a headache and he didn't need to aggravate it. He gruffly ordered them to sleep, threatening dire consequences for the slightest delay. Neither girl looked at him when they finally crawled into bed, facing directly away from him and each other. It was clear no bedtime story was wanted and that they wouldn't even want their goodnight kisses. So he left with a simple "Goodnight gurls, I love you" He felt horrible that _that_ was all he gave them and decided to make it up to them in the morning. Then, exhausted, Gru went to his bedroom and passed out in his clothes on his bed. After the initial surprise of the blackout, he lay back down but kept an eye open, watching for the slightest thing to go wrong. Then the break-in alarm sounded.

The strike of a rattlesnake moved nowhere near as fast as Gru when that alarm sounded. In the past, stealth would've been his tactic, but not now. Not with three little helpless kittens under his care. Gru does have defenses for them, mainly a force of his elite fighting breed minions, but also he had slipped a proto-type shocker pistol under Edith's bed. Margo was absolutely against the idea of arming them, claiming it was corrupting, dangerous, and just plain unnecessary. His reasoning was that he wasn't all-powerful, and needed a way to be certain they would be okay if anything happened. It had fallen on deaf ears. Margo had just told him that "If you really wanted us to be safe, you'd quit villainy." The implication that he didn't really care that much hit hard and Gru's only response, that he could say to her at least, was that villainy was all that kept them fed and sheltered. Alone, he could also add that he loved villainy. Now it was abundantly clear to him. Did he love villainy more than he loved his daughters? Edith had almost died in the iron maiden on their very first day here. Now they could all be taken away, maybe for good.

As soon as Gru had his freeze ray out, gunfire erupted from downstairs. His blood froze for a split-second; whoever had broken in intended to _kill_! Realizing the lab could be a possible target, Gru turned on his communication screen to warn Nefario and remind him to get Agnes into a safe room. He would berate himself for this delay for months. Drawing his lethal fireball pistol, Gru sprinted for the girls' bedroom. Then a pistol round erupted from the stairwell. It was like someone injected a quart of pure adrenaline into Gru's body. When he reached the bedroom door an eternity later (about 2 seconds), he found two of his best minions falling off the wall and Kevin, poor Kevin, screaming, a knife embedded deep in his eye. There was also a darkly dressed man sprinting down the hall, towards the main staircase. Not bothering to let the gun reach full power, Gru fired, barely missing the intruder's right boot and burning a big hole in the wall. As soon as he rounded the corner, he saw the two dark figures dive behind the statues, which were unfortunately fire resistant. Gru spoke, his voice filled with hatred of the darkest kind. "I know you're there. Surrender now, and I may let you live." His heart stopped when he heard a little voice cry,

"Daddy! Daddy they got me!" Edith. That voice belonged to his daughter.

"_Edith_? Edith, I'm coming!" Gru called, hoping to give her hope. Then he addressed the kidnappers. Gru's voice, when he spoke next, was a deep growl seething with controlled rage. "Return my daughter to me this instant. If she is not safely at my side in 3 seconds, you will know pain worse than your darkest nightmare, and it will be a nightmare from which you will never wake." There was no way those kidnappers were escaping scot-free. Once he caught them, they _would_ die, but not quickly. Breaking every available limb would simply be his consolation until he got them into the torture chamber, the sound-proofed room he kept hidden from the girls. Then the real pain would begin. It had been too long since Gru broken a man, but he would remember, remember fast. It's not something that is easily forgotten, like the riding a bike or firing a cannon. Part of Gru felt reassured when Edith appeared from behind the armor, still fighting like it was bath time. But, right as he yelled "Let her go!" the hallway was engulfed in smoke.

Gru charged his pistol, but dared not fire. It would be far too easy to kill his middle kitten. Gru hid behind the armor himself, when the pistol sounded again. He was no coward, but getting shot wouldn't help save Edith, quite the opposite in fact. Once the shots paused, perhaps to reload, Gru charged forward, regretting not having the freeze ray out. He could always un-freeze his child. As he cleared the smoke screen, he caught a glimpse of the kidnappers. They were holding hands and _flying out the window_! Edith could be seen under the arm of the one on the right. Convinced his daughter was about to die, Gru fired a full charge from his fireball pistol, wanting to at least ensure her captors didn't survive their deadly gambit. Thankfully, it just ignited the remains of the window, fusing it into a molten slab. Gru wanted desperately to jump after them, but he knew exactly how hot the glass was. One touch could cause third degree burns. Gru was ready to destroy his entire house in a wave of frustration and sorrow, but then he realized something; He had never seen Margo during the entire chase. Maybe she was still in her room, still safely within his grasp.

Terrified of what he would find, Gru ran back to the girls' room. He knew Agnes was safely downstairs, and Edith was... Gru shied away from the thought. But he didn't know what they had done with Margo. Maybe they had already slit her throat when they caught Edith. Maybe they gave her a grenade with the pin pulled. Maybe they put her under with some kind of poisonous gas. Maybe... Maybe... Gru kicked the door open so hard it literally got stuck in the wall. When he burst into the room, he almost panicked: it was empty. But A last shred of rationality reminded him that Margo knew better than to stay in the open and, fingers trembling, he opened the toy chest, the only place a girl her size could hide. A sudden scream made him drop the door, but he had it back open in a heartbeatand gathered the contents in his arms, tears of relief running down his face. The little green t-shirted bundle fought for a moment then, realizing who it was, collapsed into his arms, sobbing as well.

They stayed there for what felt like a very long time, father holding daughter, crying in both despair and relief. Finally, Gru set Margo down and ran downstairs, holding her hand the entire time. Margo didn't ask where Edith was, she didn't need to. She did know, deep in her heart, that Edith was not dead. Ever since they made the sister's pact, sealed by the exchange of blood, she could sense certain things about her siblings. Margo didn't understand it, and doubted anyone did. All that mattered to her is that it happens.

Gru got Margo to the living room, already starting the process of activating the lift. He hugged her again, then looked directly in her eyes, and told her "Go down to the lab and find Dr. Nefario. Tell him that the attackers are leaving and to pursue by air. He will then put you in a steel safe room. Agnes will be there. I'll come back for you two once it's over. I'm going to get your sister back."

"But, Mr. Gru..." Margo trailed off, unable to complete her thought.

"I _will_ be back, I promise, I just have to go save Edith. Protect Agnes for me." Gru added that last part, guessing that she was scared he would never return. Margo nodded, tears rolling down her face, and hugged her adoptive father one more time. Not bothering to set her down on the floor, Gru set his eldest kitten right into the waiting elevator. He gave her one more reassuring smile as the glass sealed between them and the arms took her away to the shaft. Margo never took her eyes off her father as the pod began its descent, even as he turned away and sprinted to the front door which then exploded, blanketing the area with wooden shrapnel. Margo flinched back as the chips slammed into the glass case, then pounded on it with all her might, screaming for Gru as she descended into the darkness of the lab below.

Gru picked himself up fast, assisted by a fresh squad of minions popping up from the hidden transport tube peppered throughout the manor. He'd been through worse, and he wasn't about to let several thousand small cuts stop him from getting his daughter back. He saw two kidnappers retreating across the short front yard, firing what looked like American M16s. Gru was about to kill them, but then he saw two more kidnappers. They had Edith and were standing at the curb. An easy shot, but why were they just standing there? One of the minions, maybe Billy, had thought to bring the emergency freeze ray from the lab. Gru gratefully accepted his favorite weapon, and then pointed it at the kidnappers, intent on freezing the whole lot. Right as the pistol reached full power, he heard a growing rumble. One he recognized from a side trip to the Middle East to steal a jeweled crown. That was the engine sound of a Stryker. Gru knew they were 8-wheeled armored vehicles and were usually equipped with a .50 Inch Remote Controlled Machine Gun. More importantly, they were capable of transporting up to 9 soldiers within. The kidnappers were going to escape! Right as Gru lined up his shot, the front yard seemed to start exploding. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! One blast after another other, his lawn was disintegrating in a maelstrom of blinding dirt and deadly shrapnel. He and the minions had no choice but to retreat into the house. Gru feared they would target the house itself, but it ended as abruptly as it had begun and was replaced by a high-pitched roar. The Stryker was away! Gru wasn't done yet though, he still had a few tricks up his sleeve.

Sprinting to the garage, he activated his personal tank, aptly named the GruMobile. People always wondered why Gru used such a big, heavy vehicle for everyday use, this is why: so that he will be ready to fight at any time. Pulling out of the garage (the door had been blown to pieces), Gru locked onto the rogue Striker with his targeting computer. Like the Hoverjet, the Grumobile was equipped with rockets, but these were more powerful; capable of capable of punching through tank armor. The fleeing Striker fired at his tank with its automatic grenade launcher, a feature he had forgotten they could attach, but it was no use. The GruMobile isn't called a tank for no reason; it takes a lot of explosive power to penetrate the hull. Right as Gru got a lock on the engine of the Striker, laughing evilly, an ear-shattering boom rocked the night and his vehicle screeched like a wounded animal. Looking back in alarm, Gru saw a gaping hole in the left side of his tank. Shocked, he looked up just in time to catch a glimpse of the Mobile Gun System before it fired again, ripping the GruMobile's engine apart. Howling in rage and despair, the villain could only watch as the tank's destroyer rolled past, nodding its turret in some kind of salute. Someone inside threw a small piece of paper onto the road, landing in front of the still-functioning headlights. It had the symbol of the Bank of Evil on it. Gru was about to lose it completely, when he heard massive doors opening. Holding onto this last, desperate hope, he watched Nefario bring the HoverJet out of the hanger, and pursue the Strikers into the black night.

* * *

Nefario teased the HoverJet, his own design of course, out of the hanger doors. It really surprised him how fiercely he wanted to get Edith back; back when the girls first arrived she had kicked him in the shin. When Gru had first brought them home, Nefario had taken no notice of them, other than ensuring they didn't break anything. He saw them merely as a trio of overly rambunctious minions that did not work. They were a distraction at best. Really, if they hadn't captured so much of Gru's attention, nothing would have happened between Nefario and the girls. However, as the date of the moon heist drew close, Nefario found Gru less and less interested in ensuring that the rocket was operating smoothly, and more and more interested in the girls. This behavior had angered Nefario more than he had ever felt in decades, even more so since his last solo heist had failed and he had spent several years in prison. After he finally escaped, no easy task given his age at the time, he found Gru, one of his apprentices from the early days. The two men decided to form a partnership. Gru had many spoils from his various successful crimes, and was more than willing to fund the old man's powerful intellect. Now, the girls Gru had adopted seemed to be tearing that indestructible bond apart. Ever more so, Gru was losing his drive for villainy. Nefario remembered what happened to their old friend Megamind, locked up as some kind of protector, bound by laws that meant nothing to villains. He had sworn to protect Gru from such a fate. Now these girls were threating both Gru and himself. Nefario did his best to restrain himself though. He did not want to hurt his friend, or cloud his mind right before a mission, but two nights before the heist, a flashpoint hit.

Despite Gru's lack of focus or effort, the rocket had been completed, with all systems checking out. As soon as the Doctor came to report the good news, what he feared had come true. Gru no longer wanted the moon. He was willing to put a silly _dance recital_ ahead of his own dream! As Nefario gave Gru a pep talk, he let some of his anger show and warned Gru that he needed to do something about the girls, or Nefario would. Seemingly humbled at last, Gru walked off, muttering that he understood. The Doctor wasn't sure if he did or not, but felt his message had come across. He let his tone of voice remind Gru of his intent though. Nefario only used a deep voice when he intended to hurt someone, and he was not above "getting rid of" three innocent young girls. He would hate doing it to someone so young, but he would do it. It would be Gru's own fault for not picking up on the obvious threat.

When Nefario had returned from the lab that morning, he fully expected to see Gru focused on the moon again. The man had been dreaming of catching it since he was a boy, and never ignored one of the mad doctor's warnings. If nothing else, Nefario had known the girls would be fine two days basically on their own. Perhaps Gru had sent them to Marlena, his mother. Even If Gru had decided to bring the girls back after the heist, Nefario wouldn't have stopped him. The spoils of such a heist were guaranteed to last years. He could've train the girls to be true villains during that time, or something. But then, it was crunch time. Confident things were back to normal; Nefario had gone straight to the kitchen for a light snack, expecting to see Gru prepared for the day's work. What he saw there made his very blood boil. Gru was putting on some kind of show for the girls again! He did not have his overcoat on, had no moon plans anywhere in sight, he was even laughing! On the day before a heist! His vision running red, Nefario had started back to the lab. His mind was racing over the best way to eliminate the girls. The old man preferred not to kill anyone, when possible, as it substantially increases your bounty for little gain. But the old man's gloves have blood on them. Right as his hand was resting on the elevator call button, the doctor stopped. There was no way to "eliminate" the girls without Gru knowing it was him, and possibly seeking retribution. However, there _was_ a way to get them out of their lives, and it was even legal! All emotion gone from his heart, Nefario had phoned Miss Hattie's Home for Girls.

Ms. Hattie seemed very surprised a member of the Gru household was calling about the girls. He got the sense that if girls are adopted from that place; they do whatever it takes to avoid going back. The implication gave the normally conscienceless man a flutter in his stomach, these were innocent young girls he was dealing with, and maybe he was sending them back into a hellhole for just being girls. Then he hardened. The next few years of experimentation funds depended on this heist, Nefario wasn't about to stop now. Gru had had his chance to move the girls and ignored it. Nefario informed Ms. Hattie that Mr. Gru had attempted to discipline the girls on multiple occasions (Gru never could get them to behave) and it never worked. Nefario told Ms. Hattie that Gru could not handle the stress, and he had talked the man into sending them back. Ms. Hattie stated she was very surprised the girls had discipline problems, and not to worry, she would ensure they were properly punished. It was a strange choice of words; something told him that there was a good chance of abuse going on in the orphanage. He doubted such an airhead like Ms. Hattie knew any decent techniques, but these were young girls she was dealing with. They don't need too much stress to cause serious mental damage.

What remained of the old villain's conscious had attacked him as hard as it could, and he added that Mr. Gru was very busy at the time, and that if the girls were disciplined properly, there was a good chance Mr. Gru would re-adopt the girls. Nefario knew that if Ms. Hattie really was an evil dictator (not always a bad thing in his mind), that the girls were sure to be abused all the worse for that last comment. It had left the door open for their return though, and the doctor had forced his heart back down. Ms. Hattie agreed that she would "fix" those girls, and if Mr. Gru decided he wanted them back, it would cost him a little something on the side. Nefario agreed, told her to come at noon, and ended the call. Then went straight to the lab to get his mind off what he had done.

When noon finally came, Nefario was reminded exactly why he had called Ms. Hattie. Gru was having a tea party with the girls. His evil side breathed a side of relief at the doorbell, but he had to keep deleting thoughts about Ms. Hattie. It was the only way to keep his focus. _Gosh, the girls are even distracting me now. No wonder Gru is so bad_. Nefario thought. When Gru opened the door, his surprise was clear, as was his indecision. When Gru looked back, presumably to look at his adopted daughters, he instead saw Nefario, glaring at him from behind his goggles. The indecision finally seemed to evaporate from Gru, but instead of a hardened shell of determination forming over his friend, something akin to a deep sadness took its place. Nefario didn't see what happened when he went inside to inform the girls of what was happening, but he returned with the three sister's things, the youngest one clinging to his leg. Nefario never cried, but even he felt some regret as the children were piled into the car, defeated sorrow on each of their faces. Still, he looked on the bright side of things, and brought Gru back into the house, ready to finish the heist, once and for all. That night, nightmares of three tiny girls screaming under a wooden ruler wracked his darkened soul.

An incessant beeping woke Nefario from his pondering; the Stryker and Tank Destroyer were leaving scanner range! Literally growling threats under his breath, he hit the throttle, and the HoverJet screamed into pursuit.

Lining up his target based purely on the infrared scanners, Nefario locked onto the trailing vehicle. Frantic, near hysteric transmissions from Gru told him that Tank Destroyer had disabled the GruMobile, and that the Stryker was carrying Edith and at least 4 kidnappers. Gru was also making sure Nefario remembered not to hurt Edith when he stopped the Stryker, but it was unnecessary. The doctor had no intention of letting his favorite weapons tester get hurt. First he would destroy the Tank Killer with missiles and torpedoes, and then Nefario planned to turn on his spotlights and perform gun runs on the Stryker. With careful shots he could kill the driver, seize the engine, or pop all the tires, though multiple runs would be necessary for the last option. Whatever happened, that Stryker _would_ be stopped. Nefario then planned to hold them at (massive) gunpoint until Gru and the minions arrived. Everything was worked out. Nothing could go wrong. Except that as soon as Nefario fired the first torpedo, the targeted Tank Killer disappeared in a cloud of white smoke. Nefario did not understand at all, normal smoke could not fool an infrared scanner. Only military grade Infrared Countermeasure smoke, enhanced with metal filaments, could do that. Right as the truth dawned on Nefario, a warning tone began blaring.

Immediately pulling out of his low-speed attack pattern, Nefario activated the Electronic Countermeasures in the nose of the HoverJet. While Gru's Jet was not designed specifically for dog fighting, it was fully capable of going toe to toe with a modern F/A-18 Hornet. As Nefario glanced at the radar screen, he was surprised to see no enemy aircraft. Perhaps it was a land-based Stinger missile that had targeted the Hoverjet. Gru had the latest in radar technology, very few planes could avoid showing up on the screen, even if they flew only several feet off the deck. Just as Nefario activated Hover mode and his ground radar, an invisible stream of deafening bullets sliced through the engine and ripped into his right wing. The engine caught fire immediately, and Nefario knew he had seconds before it exploded, which could shred his rear fuselage and doom any chances of landing safely.

Thinking quickly, he cut the fuel lines, buying him a little more time, and wrenched his wounded plane towards Ms. Abernathy's back yard. Even with his damaged hearing, Nefario could hear the screeching of metal in the right wing, that thing wasn't far from giving out altogether. One false move could kill him. But as the final approach was made, things were looking up. Then the engine exploded, the right wing was torn off, and the HoverJet smashed into the ground like a burning meteor. The nearby hovering F-35B Lighting surveyed the wreckage, determined there would be no survivors, and flew off to base, mission accomplished. The daughter had been captured, the plan would now commence. The pilot couldn't help an evil chuckle as his plane disappeared into the night.

* * *

Far below, in a burning pile of twisted metal, something moved. It could be nothing, but then again, it could be something...

**A/N: Report. Chapter 3 has been sent to NightOwl360, it should be back to me soon. I'm still working on the Chapter 4 Alpha, need to re-watch the movie and regain my "spark". Reviews help that spark out a lot. :) Food for thought. Be back soon guys!**


	3. Chapter 3

It could have been a family driving to the grocery store in their SUV. The driver was mostly quiet, only occasionally yelling to his passengers to quiet down. Several guys were joking around and teasing each other in the back, with a playful fight erupting now and again. A small girl was sulking in the corner, hat pulled down over her eyes. It all could have been normal, yet none of it was. The 'SUV' was a military Stryker vehicle. The 'guys' were a team of Black Ops soldiers; giddy from the adrenaline rushes of their successful mission. The little girl was still a little girl but she wasn't sulking about what they were or weren't going to get at a candy shop. She appeared to be sulking about going at all. No one was complaining though, most girls would not be so calm after being kidnapped.

* * *

The girl in question had no idea what had happened. One minute she was up late with Margo, arguing about school and the next, she was being taken away in a very scary car. Somewhere in between was lots of gunfire, explosions and a long, jarring fall. Through a window, if she remembered it right. "_Some guy jumped me and ran out a window, shooting up the house. I can already see Agnes' face."_ Edith smirked. She'd have to make a few embellishments and then it would be an awesome story! She almost whipped around to tell Margo, then reality sunk back in.

Moisture threatened the corner of her eye; the proud child had to viciously rub her eye to make it go away. Crying was the one thing she would never do in front of anyone. Even in the horrible, horrible years she spent at Ms. Hattie's Home for Girls, those tears would never form under the harsh glow of buzzing electric lights. Only in the total darkness alone and safe in her bed would Edith allow herself to let it out, if only a little. Those nights, she would curl up as far under the covers as she could go, bury her head deep into the pillow to muffle her sounds, and cry. Let the raw emotions she had been restraining all day to wrack her small body, let the bed absorb the cries of pain and despair she desperately needed to scream, and the soft fabric of the pillow to absorb the rivers of tears that would flow from her eyes.

Her sisters never asked why her eyes were so red the morning after, they didn't need to. They understood that Edith couldn't show how badly she felt, that it would expose her vulnerable heart to Ms. Hattie's hellish rage. So would just both hug her, whisper words of encouragement, and let their actions say what their words couldn't. Any other time, Edith would've pushed them away, claiming that such intimate displays were beneath her, but not on the mornings after. On those days, before a fresh day of torment began, they would just embrace each other, sharing their strengths and weaknesses. Margo let Edith's headstrong confidence bring her up, Edith let Agnes's innocent hope become her own, and Agnes would feel all her fears dissolving under Margo's protective shield. These were their favorite moments; it provided fleeting memories of their true home, the one that had been so violently ripped from them. Always though, Ms. Hattie's sickening voice would boom through the P.A., and it was over. It would be time to return to prison.

"Yo! El Chica! Why the long face?" a taunting yell came from the kidnappers, followed by rancorous, cruel laughter. Edith balled her fists, wanting nothing more than to turn around and punch all their faces in but knew if she tried, she would be hurt. Ms. Hattie never hesitated to use her ruler to "prevent more fighting". However bad she might've been, these men were so much worse. They had tried to shoot dad, and one fuzzy memory actually displayed a gun pointed at _her. _For all she knew, they might kill her for hitting them. So the girl tried to force her anger down, however, it seemed to get stuck in her throat. Something was burning, making it really hard to breathe. Edith swallowed as hard as she could, but the lump stayed right where it was. A tear was dripping out of her eye when a loud _thunk_ echoed throughout the car. She risked turning her head just enough to see, and saw one man had decked another, just like she had wanted to. Slowly, the burning went away, and she wiped her eye again as the bigger kidnapper chewed out the smaller one. She turned away before they could notice her looking.

"Sorry about my squad-mates, they're usually pretty wild after a successful mission. You can come to me if anyone bothers you." A voice said from behind the young girl. It was much deeper than the first one had been, and sounded… so much more mature than the others. It was hard to describe, but his voice carried no hint of joking or malice. A small part of her immature mind wondered if he was really a robot, programmed to act like a human. Still, she finally had a target for her anger and sarcasm, and quietly replied:

"Well, some mean people kidnapped me, it's kind of bothersome."

There was a brief pause, and when he replied, there seemed to be a hint of sadness in his voice. (Disproving the robot theory) "I'm sorry you were dragged into this. All I can say is that your father owes our client a great deal of money, and we've been hired to ensure he pays what he owes."

The 8-year had almost no clue what the man had said, but she caught the tone. "So, you're holding me for ransom?" she asked hopefully.

Behind his combat mask, the soldier smiled. "Yes, I guess you could say that." Edith thought this was insanely cool. Just like the hero in that awesome movie she couldn't finish because Dad had caught her. She smiled, grounded for a week, but so worth it. However, the memory of her father, even when he was yelling at her, brought the girl back down. She remembered exactly where she was.

"I want to go home." She said, her sadness showing through. Edith hated herself for sounding so weak, but it was the simple truth. She and her sisters hadn't had a real home for almost 3 years, ever since that fire... Even now, none of them could be around an open flame without running away or crying. One of the worst tortures Ms. Hattie had ever used against them was tying them to a chair and lighting a match as close as their noses. Those days, if two of the girls found their sister quivering and whimpering on the floor, they would know what Ms. Hattie had done. They didn't sleep alone those nights; the girls would join all the beds together, and sleep in one great bundle. Somehow, it kept the nightmares away. Still, Gru knew when his daughters would scream and the first time Agnes had a nightmare, he gathered up all three girls and they slept together in his bed. Edith knew her Dad was secretly awkward and nervous, but he relaxed when they all cuddled into him and slept, even Margo. Those mornings were the best, as they would wake up knowing they were all together and loved once more. Even if it did take a while to unwrap Agnes from Dad's leg.

"Don't worry young one, I'm sure this will all be over soon enough. Your father's not known for letting things go easily." The soldier finished as he sat back down, a knowing smile on his face. Felonious had once chased him across the entire continental U.S. to retrieve a set of stolen blueprints to his first hideout. It had been quite the mission. If Mr. Gru had recognized him on this mission, he probably would've jumped out the window after them, knife in hand. A distant _hiss _brought another smile to the soldier. He knew they were almost home.

Edith jumped in her seat as a giant BA-DOOM shook the car. The kidnappers didn't seem bothered at all, in fact, they seemed more excited. She was about to ask what the heck was going on, when they all got to their feet, like they were ready to run, and one grabbed her around the waist and mouth. Biting hard and trying to scream, the young girl barely noticed the back door falling open and all the kidnappers sprinting out. Then everything turned into a blur.

A roll that made her sick to her stomach.

A jarring stop, with little _bzzt_'s flying by.

A distant scream of pain.

Another roll, steel beams flashing by.

Being drug across a grated metal floor, a hand muffling her cries.

Being swung side to side as the world flashed by.

The sounds of fists hitting flesh.

A long drawn out yell…

Edith was about to puke. However, right before her stomach gave way, a loud voice called out "Stop!" and the world went still. After her guts stopped turning and got back into place, she looked up to see a lone, bald man striding down the walkway they were on. His steps echoed everywhere, since they were the only sound at all in the massive warehouse-sized room. Down below, she could see the strange car that had taken her away from home, along with five other, stranger looking cars. Two seemed to have a cannon on top, two had six wheels and a weird thingy on top, and two looked like normal cars with another thingy on top. Edith had no idea what the things on top might be, but she did remember dad's lawn basically started exploding as she was being thrown into the six-wheeled car without a cannon. Maybe they were magic! Suddenly, the lights were blotted out, and someone cleared their voice right over her head. Edith slowly looked up, seeing only the outline of a shaved head silhouetted against the blinding warehouse lights.

Slowly the head came into focus. The man had a scrunched up face, like he was always squinting. His head was almost completely devoid of hair, except for some dark outlines here and there. His ears were huge and bulging; like they were full of water or something. His nose was battered and flattened. His lips were very pale, almost impossible to tell apart from the rest of his face. His eye brows were blonde, also camouflaged well against his face. Even his eyes seemed hidden, a deep blue inside wide slits of eyelids. Still, the lines on the scrunched part of his face carried the expression well, and he looked pissed! All of the young girl's instincts told her to curl up and hide, but her ego wouldn't let her. So she glared back at the man with all the menace she could gather. He just glared harder at her. Right as Edith was about to break and look away, his eyes softened, his mouth kinda almost smiled, and he started to laugh.

The laugh had a deep tone, but was full of energy and life. It brought a warm glow to the young girl all by itself. Around her, the soldiers (for half were in uniform) slowly started loosening up. Guns that were held closely to their chests were falling to their sides. The tense, jaded expressions were morphing into easygoing smiles. Even the arm keeping a strong grip on its hostage loosened, giving her some breathing room. The girl was too busy to enjoy her new freedom though. She was staring at the man in utter confusion. Not even her extremely random super-villain dad laughed for no reason. The thought that he was insane crossed her mind when he clapped his hands and began a speech to the soldiers.

"Bravo and Charlie squads win this round boys!" He called across the room. Three of the soldiers looked a little put off by his choice of words, but most were now cheering and doing victory hoots. "They managed to break Alpha squads defense AND (he said it loudly) brought me an 8-year old girl who can stare me down longer than Dillon!" Joyous, teasing laughter broke out everywhere, and one very sheepish looking soldier was getting many playful pats on the back. "However!" he said abruptly and the room grew quiet. "I was also kind of hoping to get an 11-year old bookworm." The room went silent as Edith's head started buzzing. They were after Margo too! Who were these people? She looked up in time to see another half-smile show on his face. "Ah, we're fine ya big dummies, mission successful, everyone to the mess hall!" What followed could only be described as a human stampede. When it cleared, only Edith and the bald guy were left in the room.

He put his hands behind his back and started circling the young girl, his face curious and inquisitive, like he was trying to find something inside her. Edith stood there without moving, glaring at him when she could see him. This 8-year old is a master of projecting an image of confidence and general recklessness. Even if she feeling nervous and scared inside. Still, with every revolution, the man grew more knowing and a little condescending. Edith got the distinct feeling he saw straight through her mask. Finally, he stopped and faced her. "You do an excellent job of hiding your emotions, even better than some of my soldiers." He stated. The little girl was a little unnerved at how fatherly he sounded. "Be careful though. Here, bluffs will be called and a brave statement will be tested. Don't say something unless you're prepared to back it up. Understand?" Edith nodded, feeling much more humble than before. "Normally, you'd be placed in the cells for the duration of your stay, but you're quite young and have committed no crime…" he trailed off. Edith felt a shiver go through her at the word slammer, but didn't quite know why.

The sound of boots on the steel walkway announced one of the soldier's rapid approach. His face seemed covered in some kind of sauce. He snapped into a standing form, and then stated "Lieutenant"

The bald man turned, assumed the same stance and replied "Corporeal".

"I know that normally we would use the Brig to house our hostages, but due to her age, I would like to make an exception this once." The bald man nodded, looking interested, if skeptical.

"I request that she sleep in the Bulldog Barracks, with my fireteam."

"Really, why is that?" the bald man stated, starting to circle the 'Corporeal'.

"We were the ones to enter the house, we should be the best prepared to understand her actions or needs."

The man finished one circle, smiled at the Corporeal, and stated "You just want her near you Nicholas. Something happened during the operation, something you did, that you feel you need to make up for." Edith wasn't sure what he could've done, the memories were pretty sketchy, but the soldier nodded stiffly. "Permission granted, I was actually thinking about the problem myself. Keep her away from the drinks and guns though, I want no incidents, understand?"

"Yes Sir!" the younger corporeal hooted, masking his emotions.

"Good, you're her babysitter from now on then. Watch her like you would your own daughter. Now get back there before all the good food is gone." The older man said, clapping the corporeal on the back.

"Come with me little one." The younger man said, and took her deeper into the base, into his home. Edith was still nervous, scared, and still desperately wanted to go home. But she sensed that she would be cared for here, and could go home soon. In the end, that's all she really wanted.


End file.
